Hauppage HD PVR 2 Gaming Edition review

Demonstrate your console gaming skills by recording the evidence on a Mac or PC

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Our Verdict

For

Big hardware record button

Photo confirmation of cables

Against

Some illogically placed settings

Requires a spare plug socket

The Hauppauge HD PVR 2 captures output from things like games consoles and records it on your Mac or PC. Tell its app which cables you're using and it helpfully shows photos to verify the choice, and a textual description of the signal its receiving.

A slightly delayed video preview can be displayed if VLC is installed, but the input is immediately sent to a TV to allow normal play.

Video data rate and colour can be controlled from the app. Captures can be triggered from the application, or using the conveniently large button that sits atop the hardware.

Recordings are stored as an MPEG transport stream, which OS X can't immediately play. Strangely, listed among Audio Encoder settings is one that automatically rewraps the media in an MP4 file. It contains H.264 video and MPEG-4 audio, which QuickTime and many other apps can read.

Our Mac mini took just a couple of minutes to process an hour-long video, but this step isn't necessary with our existing champion kit of this kind.

Recordings are broadcast to a server using the UDP protocol by specifying an IP address and port number, but you can't simply provide account details for services such as YouTube Live.

Lack of convenience extends to simpler features, most notably that the app reverts to Component input every time it's opened.

Tech Specs

Product Type

Video Recorder

USB

Yes

HDMI

Yes

S-Video

Yes

Component Video

Yes

Product Family

HD PVR 2

Brand Name

Hauppauge

Functions

Video Recording

Platform Supported

PC

Height

38.1 mm

Width

152.4 mm

Depth

152.4 mm

Manufacturer

Hauppauge Computer Works

Product Name

HD PVR Gaming Edition, with English Manual

Product Line

HD PVR 2

Video Formats

H.264, AVCHD, MP4

Manufacturer Part Number

01482

Manufacturer Website Address

http://www.hauppauge.com

Marketing Information

Record your Xbox®360 or PS3® game play in HD

Upload and share your games on YouTube with one click

Includes real-time passthrough, allowing you to play while you record

Includes all the cables you need to connect to your Xbox 360 or PS3

Record video game play in HD on your laptop or desktop PC HD PVR 2 Gaming Edition records high definition video from a Sony® PlayStation®3 or Microsoft® Xbox® 360 onto your Windows laptop or desktop PC, in a high definition H.264 format. Make video recordings of your best game play in HD. Upload your favorite games to YouTube and share them with other gamers online. Or make a high definition movie of your game play to share with your friends or use it to discuss tactics with your clan members! You can also play your game play recordings back onto your PC screen or transfer them over your home network for playback on a PS3 or Xbox 360.